Potential Risk of Virus Carryover by Fabrics of Personal Protective Gowns

Frontiers in Public Health

Katsuaki Shinohara¹  Tomoko Koshiba²  Michiko Morimoto³  Yukiko Uchida⁴  Fuminori Tanabe⁵  Kohji Moriishi⁵  Hirotake Kasai⁵  Noriko Shimasaki⁶  Iyoko Katoh⁷  Soichi Arakawa⁸ 

[1] Division of Biosafety Control and Research, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan;Faculty of Fashion Science, Bunka Gakuen University, Tokyo, Japan;Faculty of Health and Welfare Science, Okayama Prefectural University, Soja, Japan;Faculty of Health and Welfare, Takasaki University of Health and Welfare, Takasaki, Japan;Faculty of Medicine, University of Yamanashi, Chuo, Japan;Influenza Virus Research Center, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan;Oral Health Science Research Center, Kanagawa Dental University, Yokosuka, Japan;Sanda City Hospital, Sanda, Japan;

关键词: personal protective equipment;    infection;    surgical gown;    fabric;    health care workers;    virus;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2019.00121

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Personal protective gowns and coveralls are classified based on barrier efficiency that validates protection from fluid penetration under certain pressures. Materials standardized in this system have been found suitable for emergency medical practices confronting highly contagious diseases. Nevertheless, adhesion of blood, and body fluids from virus-infected patients to the surface of protective clothing still imposes a risk of pathogen transmission in the process of doffing, or undressing. We performed a small-scale experiment to test the possibility of infectious virus carryover on the surface of different fabrics used in commercially available protective gowns. Application of a lentivirus vector that expresses green fluorescent protein allowed easy monitoring of infectious viral loads on fabrics. Results indicate that fabrics of level-3 surgical gowns serve better to reduce virus transmission compared to fabrics of chemical protective clothing with the same or higher barrier efficiency. Analysis of sliding angles provided indexes of fluid repellency, which were inversely related to virus carryover potentials. Droplets of infectious body fluids may easily roll off fabrics with water-repellent finishing. Thus, virus carryover is a measurable risk factor to be considered for better choice of personal protective clothing.

【 授权许可】

Unknown